Tourettes and Immune System

[lynn]

This came up on my PubMed alert (that also sends me info about Panda habitat.) Don't have the full article, but it does seem significant -- spinal tap shows bands that appear to relate to immune system.

 

Mov Disord. 2011 Feb 1;26(2):343-6. doi: 10.1002/mds.23403. Epub 2010 Oct 19.

Oligoclonal bands in cerebrospinal fluid in patients with Tourette's syndrome.

Wenzel C, Wurster U, Müller-Vahl KR.

SourceClinic of Psychiatry, Socialpsychiatry and Psychotherapy, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany. Wenzel.Claudia@MH-Hannover.de

 

Abstract

Since a postinfectious or autoimmune etiology is suggested to be involved in the pathogenesis of Tourette's syndrome (TS), we investigated oligoclonal bands (OB) of immunoglobulin G (IgG) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), indicating a humoral immune response in the central nervous system. CSF examinations including isoelectric focusing to analyze the presence of OB were performed in 21 TS patients [17 men/4 women, mean age = 29 ± 12 (SD) years]. Isoelectric focusing showed the presence of positive OB in 6, borderline bands in 2, and serum and CSF bands ("mirrored pattern") in another 2 patients. Clinical data did not correlate with CSF findings. Thus, 38% (8 of 21) of our patients exhibited pathological CSF bands. Since none of them suffered from another disease known to be associated with OB, our results suggest an association with the pathogenesis of TS itself and point to an involvement of immunological mechanisms in TS pathology.

 

Copyright © 2010 Movement Disorder Society.

 

PMID: 20960488 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20960488?dopt=Abstract

[PowPow]

YAY!! Thanks for posting this-- I always appreciate "more preaching to the choir" !

[trggirl]

Thanks for posting!!!